


As you were

by kasiopeia



Series: Growing strong [2]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Gen, Hurt Darcy Lewis, Minor Violence, SHIELD Agent Darcy Lewis, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-22
Updated: 2015-02-22
Packaged: 2018-03-14 14:06:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3413468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kasiopeia/pseuds/kasiopeia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He takes a deep breath and makes sure his voice is calm "Agent Lewis?"</p><p>They can hear ragged breathing on the line, before Darcy's voice is in the room, "Phil." Her voice has none of it's usual force behind it, just a breathy sigh of relief. </p><p>Phil breathes his own sigh of relief. "I'm here. We are coming to get you."</p><p>Darcy is hurt and needs an extraction, the team comes to her rescue. Set sometime in season 1 of Agents of Shield, before the Tahiti reveal.</p>
            </blockquote>





	As you were

**Author's Note:**

> Hi again! I tried to write from Phil's POV this time which proved trickier than I imagined... I hope you all enjoy this, it's a bit of a time jump from the first story, just a glimpse into the future. 
> 
> This is a continuation of 'Pick a Star on the Dark Horizon', you don't have to read that first, but I recommend it to get the backstory.

It's an as normal day as any on the bus. They are on the way to a pick-up. No rush, just a milk run and everyone is taking it as an unexpected day off. At least until May's voice sounded through his intercom. 

"Sir, I think you should come up here." Her voice was too calm and Phil was out of his chair and across the room before he even noticed the small tell-tale signs of the bus changing direction. 

He passed Skye and Ward by the kitchen, and answered their questioning eyes with a shrug, after all he didn't know what was going on yet. It might be nothing. Is probably nothing. 

"Sir." May says when he ducks into the cockpit. "We got a message from HQ, agent in distress and we are the closest to their location." 

"Okay, rescue mission. Details?" Phil says, already thinking through possible scenarios and who to send down. But it's all cut short when May looks at him half a second longer than he is comfortable with and when she averts her gaze she says, "Sir, it's Agent Lewis." 

And his breath stops. 

 

 

"How did you know?" Phil asks May later; they are standing in the briefing room, the rest of the team is on their way. "I never told you about us." 

There is a beat before she answers, "I know you Phil, I could see it." 

(This is a lie. One of many, he will come to realize later. May didn't know, not really, but back when she made this team, she had wanted Agent Lewis, not Ward. But Fury had said no. He'd said no, and not given another reason than that Agent Lewis was 'his back-up plan'. And well, May isn't stupid, is she?)

The rest of the team comes in then and Phil fills them in, and they never find the time to finish the conversation. May leaves for the cockpit, Skye tries to locate Darcy's ear bud, while Ward and FitzSimmons is awaiting orders. Phil knows that Darcy will be badly wounded to call for an extraction, and he wants Simmons to hear the details as soon as possible so she can prepare. 

 

 

"Coulson." Skye speaks up after what seems to be impossibly long. "I've triangulated the signal and located her ear bud." She brings up the map on the screen, a small red dot is blinking in a small valley behind the targets manor.

"Can I speak to her?" Phil asks, looking at that blinking dot and hopes, hopes, hopes that she is still there. Skye's hands moves over the keyboard and then she nods at him.

He takes a deep breath and makes sure his voice is calm "Agent Lewis?"

They can hear ragged breathing on the line, before Darcy's voice is in the room, "Phil." Her voice has none of it's usual force behind it, just a breathy sigh of relief. 

Phil breathes his own sigh of relief. "I'm here. We are coming to get you."

"I knew you missed me." She says with a chuckle that turns into a cough. 

"Injuries Agent Lewis?"

"Well." Darcy takes a deep breath. "I seem to remember a time in the not so distant past that I spent weeks by your bedside in a hospital being my own delightful self. I think this is the time for you to repay me Agent Coulson."

"Darcy." Phil's voice has a pleading quality he doesn't recognize.

Her voice is suddenly serious, the voice Phil recognizes as her Agent voice. "Gunshot wound approximately fifteen centimeters above left hip. No exit. Gunshot wound in right shoulder. Through and through. Right leg is broken. Possibly in several places. And I stubbed my toe going down the hill, sir."

"Anything else?" He arches for her, and prays they will get to her in time. 

"Nothing else serious. A few cuts and bruises." a pause like she doesn't want to continue. "Bruising around my neck from a strangulation attempt."

His head drops, he doesn't want to imagine someone's hands around her throat, someone trying to end her life, but he can't stop. "We are just a few minutes out, Agent Lewis."

"Phil, I want to say..."

"No." 

"Phil." Darcy's voice was pleading.

"No. You don't get to say goodbye. This is not goodbye." He is refusing to let it be one. The whole team is looking at him now, they know something is up, that this is not any agent. And while he knows he should care that their carefully guarded secret is slipping out, he can't bring himself to do so. In this moment it doesn't matter. Simmons put a hand on his shoulder lightly before she and Fitz slips out of the room.

"Sir. Yes, sir." Darcy says.

"Just stay with me Darcy."

"Always." Her voice is weaker now. 

"Just keep talking, we are right over your location now, we are going to lower Agent Ward down to get you." 

"Agent Ward is an asshole." Darcy says a bit stronger, and Phil smiles and glances at Ward. To his surprise Ward is smiling as well. It's small, but it's there. 

"You always say the nicest things Lewis." Ward says. 

"Just get your dumb ass down here and I promise I'll give you one proper compliment when this is all over."

"I'll hold you to that." Ward says before he leaves the room. 

Then it's just Skye and him left, Skye is looking at him with concern and curiosity. She opens her mouth as to speak, but seems to think better of it, and just gives him a sympathetic smile. 

"Darcy?" Phil tries, but all they can hear is her ragged breathing. "Darcy?" still nothing, and after that they are silent; listening to Darcy's breathing, and hoping it won't stop. 

After 3 minutes, 27 seconds, or an eternity to be more exact, Ward's voice rings through the room. "I got her sir. Unconscious, but her pulse is steady. Coming back up now."

Phil is out of the room as soon as the last word is spoken, and when Ward is being pulled up he is rushing there and helping to put Darcy on the stretcher Simmons has brought down. And Darcy, oh Darcy, she is paler than he's ever seen her, and he is so scared, he can't loose her, can't loose her, he loves her _so_ much. This can't be the end.

"Sir, I have to move her." Simmons voice cuts through his rambling thoughts, and he stumbles back; hadn't realized that he was crouched over Darcy's lifeless body, stroking her hair and in general acting like something that is not himself. 

He watches in helplessness as Skye and Ward carries the stretcher with Simmons running behind. He just watches and when they are gone he puts his head in his hands, presses the heels of his hands into his closed eyes and lets the pressure ground him. Then he heaves himself up and follows his heart to the med bay. 

 

 

Darcy doesn't wake up for two days. 

He only leaves her side once, when Simmons bullies him out of his chair to get some sleep and a shower, because 'with all due respect sir, I am sure Agent Lewis would like you better clean and awake. And I will sit with her until you come back, don't you worry." And he'd gone like a kid being told what to do, but a glance back found Simmons sinking into the chair he'd vacated while keeping up a soft chatter towards Darcy. Maybe it would be okay with some sleep. He's back less than four hours later, to find Simmons checking Darcy's vitals and smiling at him. 

"You look better sir. She is still stable, should wake up soon." 

He nods gratefully while sinking into the chair. Simmons makes to leave, but pauses next to him. "She'll be okay." she says softly.

"I know." Phil says. "Thank you Jemma." he looks at her. "Thank you." 

She smiles at him. "Of course. Any time."

 

 

Darcy doesn't wake up for two days. 

And when she does, it's slowly and then all at once. He feels it in the hand he is holding first, it's twitching and when he looks up at her face her eyes are moving under her eyelids. He stands up, ready to call Simmons in, but hoping that it will all be okay now. Then Darcy's eyes shots open and she sits up in bed screaming, and before he can pull back she's given him a clear right hook that makes him stumble a step back. It's not at her usual strength, but it still hurts. 

"Darcy, Darcy, it's okay, it's alright, you are safe, I'm here." He keeps repeating until she finally locks eyes with him and he can see the panic in her eyes until her whole body sags and she is scrambling forwards and he meets her halfway and they are hugging. He's holding her as tight as he can, and she is clinging to him in a way she never has before. 

It's not until he hears the flat line of the machine she was hooked up to he realizes that it has come loose and he loosens his grip on Darcy to find Simmons, but when he turns she is standing in the doorway looking at them. 

"I heard the screams." she says by way of explanation, and moves into the room. "Let me have a look." 

He looks back down at Darcy and finds her pale face. "This is Agent Simmons, she's just going to have a look at you. Is that okay?" 

Darcy nods and lies back down again, but she keeps a firm grip on his hand. 

"Hi, Agent Lewis. As Coulson said, I'm Agent Jemma Simmons. It's nice to meet you."

Darcy looks at her searchingly, "I remember your voice. But I don't... Have we met before?"

"I don't think so, but." Simmons blushes and fiddles with the syringe in her hands, "I did kind of babble at you while you were unconscious."

"Oh." Darcy says. "That's, I, thank you I guess." 

"That's quite alright. Now, you seem to have displaced your IV, I'm just going to put it back in again." She holds up the needle and Darcy holds her arm out. "I've removed the bullet and all your wounds should heal with time, although I advise you to go straight to medical when we return to the Hub, I'm not actually a medical doctor as such."

"How long was I out?" Darcy ask hoarsely. 

"Two days." 

Darcy turns to smile at him. "One day less than you, you still owe me old man." 

"Oh no, two days were quite enough, you are not allowed to do that again. As you just pointed out, I'm an old man, I don't think my heart could take it."

Darcy reaches a hand up to touch his face, he can feel the swelling starting around his eye.

"I'm sorry I hit you." Darcy says, still smiling at him. "I'm really sorry."

Simmons slips out of the room while they are talking, a soft smile on her face.

 

 

 

They do take her back to the Hub, and Darcy gets wheeled off to do her debrief. She is furious about the wheelchair, and he has to threaten her with carrying her through the base before she agrees to stay in it. He stays behind in his office and spends too much time staring at the wall, willing her to come back quicker.

In the end it's only been three hours before she is being wheeled back up the ramp by a junior agent. He goes down to find her with the rest of the team, they all turn to look at him when he descends the stairs. 

"Hello, sunshine." Darcy smiles at him.

"So I take it your debrief went well then?" he asks.

"Oh yes. It was fine. Boring, but at the end of it they gave me three weeks off to stay with my family." 

He smiles and inclines his head to the others and she nods. 

"Well, in that case I guess we can try to find space for you." he turns to the rest of the team. "Anyone have any objections to my wife staying with us for a few weeks?" 

Darcy laughs next to him at the teams shocked expressions. Everyone that is expect May and Simmons. May just nods, while Simmons takes a step forward and smiles at the both of them. 

"Of course not sir. Darcy, stay as long as you like." 

While he is wheeling her away he can hear Fitz's voice break the silence and the others chiming in. He smiles, and bends down to place a kiss on the top of Darcy's head. She turns to smile at him and he kisses her mouth, just a soft peck, but one that holds a promise for the three weeks to come.


End file.
